F5 Networks, Inc. (FFIV) Expected to Post Earnings of $2.04 Per Share

Wall Street brokerages expect F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:FFIV) to post earnings of $2.04 per share for the current quarter, Zacks reports. Eight analysts have issued estimates for F5 Networks’ earnings. The highest EPS estimate is $2.13 and the lowest is $1.98. F5 Networks reported earnings per share of $1.98 in the same quarter last year, which indicates a positive year over year growth rate of 3%. The business is scheduled to announce its next earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th.

On average, analysts expect that F5 Networks will report full-year earnings of $8.64 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $8.40 to $8.89. For the next financial year, analysts forecast that the company will post earnings of $9.13 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $8.71 to $9.80. Zacks’ EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that that provide coverage for F5 Networks.

Get F5 Networks alerts:

F5 Networks (NASDAQ:FFIV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 25th. The network technology company reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $538.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $534.71 million. F5 Networks had a return on equity of 34.70% and a net margin of 20.13%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.11 earnings per share.

Several analysts recently issued reports on FFIV shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on F5 Networks from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 9th. Drexel Hamilton reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of F5 Networks in a report on Monday, October 23rd. Nomura dropped their target price on F5 Networks from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 16th. Standpoint Research started coverage on F5 Networks in a report on Monday, October 2nd. They set an “accumulate” rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of F5 Networks in a report on Tuesday, September 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. F5 Networks presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.94.

Shares of F5 Networks (NASDAQ FFIV) traded up $2.34 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $135.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,208,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 790,385. The company has a market capitalization of $8,334.33, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.06. F5 Networks has a 12 month low of $114.63 and a 12 month high of $149.50.

F5 Networks declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, October 25th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the network technology company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

In other F5 Networks news, EVP Edward Julian Eames sold 15,336 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.06, for a total transaction of $1,856,576.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,305,333.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Andrew Reinland sold 2,241 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.03, for a total value of $271,228.23. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 15,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,860,110.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 35,712 shares of company stock worth $4,316,345. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of F5 Networks by 3.4% in the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 168,309 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $20,291,000 after buying an additional 5,509 shares during the period. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of F5 Networks by 89.1% in the third quarter. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,349 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation boosted its stake in shares of F5 Networks by 16,733.3% in the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation now owns 1,010 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $122,000 after buying an additional 1,004 shares during the period. Vident Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of F5 Networks in the third quarter valued at approximately $716,000. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of F5 Networks by 2.2% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,492 shares of the network technology company’s stock valued at $2,591,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the period. 95.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

TRADEMARK VIOLATION NOTICE: This article was first published by American Banking News and is owned by of American Banking News. If you are reading this article on another website, it was stolen and reposted in violation of United States & international copyright legislation. The correct version of this article can be read at https://www.americanbankingnews.com/2017/12/13/f5-networks-inc-ffiv-expected-to-post-earnings-of-2-04-per-share.html.

About F5 Networks

F5 Networks, Inc is a developer and provider of software defined application services. The Company is engaged in the development, marketing and sale of application delivery networking products that optimize the security, performance and availability of network applications, servers and storage systems.